What is the cheapest way to get at least 350hp from a 5.0?

 

Nos

 

At the crank:
-Get a Explorer 5.0 with GT-40 heads and intake already on it.
-Swap in a aftermarket cam (E303 works) and a set of stiffer valve springs.

or...
-Go with a Carb (and unfortunately learn how to tune it).

-Jason

 

Without a doubt the cheapest and easist way to get 350 (or More) hp from your engine is NITROUS OXIDE. Not the smartest but definilety cheapest and easiest.

 

I can agree with Nitrous being the easiest, but not the cheapest. The intial cost for power gain is cheaper than most all alternatives. But the bottle runs out quick and then you are looking at $25-75 to refill a 10lb bottle. That adds up in a hurry.

 

Nitrous as everyone is saying IMO, but you do have to refill and here in Ontario the lines cannot be hooked up while 'transporting' it.

But I would also look at a stand alone tuner unless you are talking speed density.



In the long run you should:
tuner it
DIY turbo kit it or buy a big blower for it.
*now with bigger HP fuel management may be a concern for you.....


If we are talking 350 at the wheels you should be ok. Everyone squawks when you start talking about 400+. On boost I have put 660 through a stock 5L block for a couple dyno pulls, but on the street I ran 480 w. exhaust and 540 with just down pipe. Either way, all those numbers made me nervous but at 660, frying a Viper was pretty easy WHEN there was traction.

 

Look for 5.0 or Muscle Mustangs & Fords magazines from year 2000 until present and you'll find all kinds of 300-400hp builds for 5.0/SBFs. For 350 crank hp; you are really looking at the classic HCI (Heads, cam, intake) swap accompanied by other typical Mustang bolt-ons (cold air intake, big shorty or long tube headers, larger throttle body, injectors and mass air plus ECU tuning if you plan on staying EFI).

A decent set of aluminum aftermarket heads (Trick Flow Twisted Wedge or AFR 165s) will get you there a lot easier than trying to make that power with old iron GT40 or GT40P heads and also take a lot of weight off the front end. A Trickflow Intake, Edelbrock Performer RPM II or Holley Systemax will easily support your horsepower goal (old Ford Cobra intake might get there, but will need the lower manifold ported). A good modern dual pattern hydraulic roller cam with a matched set of beehive springs (call Comp Cams for a suggestion based on your engine and gearing combination) will make a lot more low end and mid-range power than the old single pattern 90s Ford cams (B303, E303) as well as rev faster.

If you want to go the single carb route; the dual plane Edelbrock Performer RPM Air Gap manifold makes almost as much peak power as the single plane Victor manifold and has much better low end and mid range torque. Run a little larger (700cfm) Holley or Barry Grant carb with the dual plane manifold.